17.06.2013 The Quetta rampage
Even as the country was reeling from the attack on the Ziarat residency, which was claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army, as many as 28 people were massacred in Quetta on June 15, in the first major attack since the new government came into office.
Fourteen girls were killed when a female suicide bomber detonated a bomb in the parking lot of Sardar Bahadur Khan university — the only women’s university in the province — and as the 19 injured were being transferred to the Bolan Medical College teaching hospital for treatment, militants laid siege to the hospital for up to four hours, carrying out other attacks till police commandos stormed the building and freed the hostages. The attacks were claimed by the sectarian terrorist organisation, the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. The blatant targeting of the heritage of the country and a symbol of its early days and the rampage that followed serve as a blatant reminder to the incoming government of the extent of the challenge the terrorists pose and the terrible threat to the ideology and the people of this country they are. Condemnations have, of course, since followed the attacks, with the Senate and the National Assembly passing a resolution condemning it.
We have in the past, of course, seen a similar sequence of events. But one hopes that this time round, with a new government in place, we will see some change in the way matters are handled. We need to see a complete elimination of terrorism from the country for there to be any respite for its citizens. Till then, we are all vulnerable, and as the events of June 15 have shown us, nothing and no one is safe. There appears to be absolutely no room for apologists or those having a soft stance on militancy of any sort. How the government deals with the aftermath of these attacks may well be seen as a precursor of things to follow, and to keep the confidence the electorate have invested in it and follow through on its responsibilities, the government should act to ensure that such attacks are brought an end to with their perpetrators duly punished under the law. It is condemnable that the perpetrators brazenly own the attacks and yet they and their leaders roam free.
Human rights outrage
The brutal murder of a couple in Sukkur after they were declared “karo” and “kari” by their families highlights the deplorable human rights situation in Pakistan. According to a news report in The Express Tribune, four armed men gunned down a man and his wife, while they were sleeping in their house on the morning of June 13. The two had registered their marriage in a Sukkur court against the wishes of their families. No FIR was filed and the police handed over the body of the deceased to their families, who were most likely involved in the killings.
The murder of couples declared “karo” and “kari” constitutes one of the worst human rights offences and is shockingly common in Pakistan. Couples who contract a “free will” marriage are often hunted down by their families and killed, or forced to flee the country. According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s Annual Report, at least 943 women were killed in the name of honour in 2011. Social acceptability for this crime is distressingly high and an Aurat Foundation study shows that most cases highlighted in the media are never actually reported to the police. The crime is often a cover for settling property disputes and it is mainly the victim’s family members who carry it out.
Those who call for the murder of these couples and declare them karo and kari — in this particular case, clans in the Brohi tribe — should be brought to book and held responsible for the killings. Though the 2004 amendment to the PPC and CrPC defines karo kari as murder, it falls short of giving protection to victims and ensuring punishments to the perpetrators. Karo kari needs to be made non-compoundable so that out-of-court settlements are no longer possible and the social acceptability of the crime is reduced. At the same time, it is critical to sensitise and train the police. Most importantly, eradicating illiteracy should be a main concern since the crime is linked to low literacy levels.